After defeating Hyderabad’s Deccan Chargers Sunday

at the Eden Gardens, the Kolkata Knight Riders and team owner Shah

Rukh Khan were at the peak of their confidence about winning the

Indian Premier League (IPL).

“I love winning - whether it’s IPL matches or films or a game of carom

with my kids or the entire world. I believe my victory is God’s

assurance that I really worked hard,” the superstar said.

“We are the toughest competition for the other seven teams. Why one

team at a time-put all the seven teams on one side and see how the

Knight Riders battle it out against them,” Shah Rukh told IANS on the

sidelines of a press conference after Sunday’s match.

Does he not get nervous while his Knights are in action?

“Kolkata Knight Riders is my dream personified. I always wanted to be

a cricketer. Now it’s through my team that I am fulfilling my dream. I

am possessive about my team. When my boys are playing I am worried

throughout about their comfort. It’s like seeing Aryan (son) take part in

a race and praying that he wins unhurt.”

Did he spend Rs. 2 billion on the team just to fulfil his dream, or has

he already started calculating his profits?

“Do I look so intelligent as to count my profit instead of shouting and

cheering for my team?” he said with a smile.

“The team is divided into three sections - the cricket part is looked

after by my Knights, I look after the entertainment section and my

business partner Juhi Chawla and her husband Jay Mehta look after the

administrative part. The latter will be the right people to comment on

the profit.”

How was the experience of playing the first match at Eden Gardens?

“It’s fantastic. Only Kolkatans can feel the true spirit of cricket. It’s

their overwhelming support that no tough pitch and power failure

could come in the way of the victory of the Knight Riders.”

What is beyond the team motto - “Korbo, Lorbo, Jeetbo” (Do, Fight,

Win)?

“The Kolkata Knight Riders are here to teach the world how to believe

and win a dream that no one else dares to do. Discipline, dedication

and dignity are the three powers that are combined at every stroke of

our bat and every throw of our ball,” he said.

He is cocky, young and down-to-earth. Actor Arya

Babbar, son of actor-politician Raj Babbar, wears his attitude on his

sleeve.

“I never wanted to be anything else but an actor. Some people are

immensely gifted; they do so many things. Ever since I can remember, I

wanted to be under the arc lights, though dad says I can be a good

politician,” Arya told IANS in a free wheeling chat on the sprawling

green lawns of the Purana Quila fort in Delhi.

The 27-year-old actor has three new movies lined up this year. “There

are three significant projects - `The Partition’, a Hollywood production

about the India-Pakistan split of 1947 starring Jimmy Mistry, Neve

Campbell, Irrfan Khan and myself as the antagonist; Kabir Kaushik’s

‘Chehra’ where I play a psychiatrist; and a crossover movie, ‘Tune for

Her’, where I play an Indian music director in love with a white

Canadian girl,” he said.

Born Jan 4, 1981, Arya debuted with “Ab Ke Baras” in 2002 and

shared screen space with Abhishek Bachchan in Mani Ratnam’s “Guru”

in 2007. He dabbled in serious theatre for five years between the two

movies.

The actor, a momma’s pet, was here to lend moral support to his

mother Nadira Babbar, who directed a play on the mutiny of 1857

(India’s first war of independence) in the capital. It was also an

occasion to bond with his mother. “I am here like a good son - helping

her with the play and managing the media for her. I picked up media

management during my sister Juhi’s wedding,” said the young man with

a laugh.

“I usually meet my mother once every 20 days, but this time it has been

almost a month and a half. So, I left aside my shooting to be with her in

Delhi. She has been here since January,” he said.

Sporting a shadow of a beard, he is excited about his character in

“Chehra”. “It is complex. I just finished reading Frank Capell’s book on

the relevance of psychiatry in life to understand my character.” He

plays a psychiatrist who solves a murder mystery.

Hollywood has not cast its spell on Arya, who has his feet firmly

planted on the ground. “I feel as an actor your job is to act - whether it

is a French production, Italian production, Hollywood movie or Hindi

cinema, it does not matter. I have to prove myself at the end of the day,

be it in international cinema or at home. The world is so globally

networked today that everything Hindustani has reached abroad and

vice versa. The impact of a good performance is felt all over,” he said.

The Babbar scion has a long list of favourites. Dad Raj, mother Nadira,

actor-director Aamir Khan, actor Naseeruddin Shah and superspy Jason

Bourne aka Matt Damon of Hollywood.

“Matt’s eyes are intense; they speak. He doesn’t have to act on the

screen; his presence does it for him. The thing I like about Matt is that

he switches with ease from commercial to meaningful cinema,” he

said.

As for Aamir, the actor likes his “dogged pursuit”. “Aamir is like a

psychopath killer, once he is after something he gets it.”

Sonali Bendre’s eyes stir Arya, but “sadly she is married” while Esha

Deol is someone Arya will love to work with some day. “She was my

school mate and now a gym mate.”

He has a secret desire - to act in a good Punjabi movie free of cost.

“Regional cinema needs encouragement and Punjabi cinema is close to

my heart because I am a Punjabi. But the script has to be good.”

Politics, however, is an absolute no-no. “I love to read and write. May

be some day I will take to writing poetry and short stories seriously.

Politics does not allow time for family. I miss my dad, though he tries

to make up,” said Arya.

Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan has no

equals in the Hindi film industry and now his business acumen seems

set to overshadow that of India’s tycoons.

Shah Rukh has already got the biggest bang out of each penny that he

has so far sunk into Indian Premier League (IPL), the richest domestic

cricket tournament in the world.

To begin with, he bagged Kolkata Knight Riders for only $75.09

million as against the $111.9 million that industrialist Mukesh Ambani

paid for Mumbai and the $111.6 million that liquor baron Vijay

Mallya spent for Bangalore team. And in the bargain he also got the

country’s best stadium and the most fanatical fans.

Then when the players went up for auctions, it was Shah Rukh who

ended up paying less for the entire team than all the business magnates

and their army of advisors.

Advised by Kolkata Knight Riders’ team captain Saurav Ganguly, who

himself hails from a business family, Shah Rukh built up a team, which

comprised Ishant Sharma, Chris Gayle, Shoaib Akhtar, Ricky Pointing

and world’s fastest scorer Brendon McCullum, without going

overboard on the finances front.

While Delhi spent $675,000 for youngster Manoj Tewari who has

played only one international one-day, Australian captain Ricky

Ponting went to Kolkata for only $400,000.

Not one to take things easy, the actor who is often described as a

powerhouse of energy by his co-workers, set out to promote his

Knight Riders in all earnestness. Known as the King Khan, he was the

first to unleash a media blitzkrieg to build the hype around his team.

This included recording a song in his own voice and in Kolkata’s native

language titled “Korbo Lorbo Jeetbo” (Do, Fight, Win) and filming a

typical Bollywood-style video to go with it. Replete with a zillion

decked-up extras swarming Shah Rukh and a little bit of cricket

thrown-in, the music and its video were both well received.

Shah Rukh’s team then brought a range of sponsors on board that

included the sizable basket of brands that he endorses - Nokia, Tag

Heuer watches and Belmonte - in addition to a brick and mortar

company and even a jewellery brand.

These were — Housing Development and Infrastructure (HDIL), The

Telegraph, Reebok, T-Series and Getanjali Group, the latter has created

gold and diamond studded helmets, which will go to the best player in

matches involving the actor’s team.

For adding value to his long-term association with Nokia, he even

launched a music album called “Nokia 2 Hot 2 Cool” along with

music distributor and co-sponsor T-Series.

The noise that Knight Riders was making even before the games began

had not gone uncommented upon.

Vijaya Mallya, whose team was the first to go up against Shah Rukh’s,

said: “Shah Rukh Khan is a superstar and I am not. But his stardom

will not count on the cricket field. It will all depend on which team

plays a better game.”

But increasing the visibility and recall value of Kolkata Knight Riders,

seems to have gone in Khan’s favour. Moreover, with his team

triumphing over Mallya’s Bangalore Royal Challenge in the opening

match of the IPL, he has silenced all his critics who were sceptical

about making a song and dance about a game.

All media is now abuzz with details of how grand the upcoming

matches in Eden Garden are going to be and the list of top Bollywood

beauties, who will fly down to Kolkata to show solidarity with the

actor, is growing by the day.

Shah Rukh sure knows how to put up a good show. Though he comes

from a middle-class family that had no connection to either the film

world or business, Khan sure can teach a lesson or two to India’s

richest businessmen.

-*-

Actors turning entrepreneurs is an emerging trend. Stung by the

penniless end of some of Bollywood’s former giants, the new

generation of Indian movie stars is turning entrepreneurial must before

the limelight dims.

While opening production houses is common among most actors and

directors, there are many who are into retail, fashion and hotel industry

and now into the world of cricket as exemplified by Shah Rukh and

Preity Zinta, who have heavily invested in the Indian Premier League.

Apart from this, Shah Rukh’s production house — Red Chilies — is

striving to emerge as the best in animation and special effects. He is,

perhaps, cautious after India’s biggest star Amitabh Bachchan’s

production house folded with losses of Rs.900 million.

One of the first few actors who began investing in business apart from

the film industry was Mithun Chakraborty who started his own hotel

business in south India. Since Mithun, many have followed including

actors like Suniel Shetty and Bobby Deol.

Among the ladies, former Miss World and Bollywood actress

Sushmita Sen has also launched her own company with plans to make

movies and enter the hotel and health spa industry.

Politics, off course, is another post retirement career option that is

open to actors. But there too the lifespan seems to be limited and the

likes of Govinda, Vinod Khanna and Hema Malini cannot be blamed

for coming back to face the camera while dabbling as people’s

representatives.

But not all actors are business-savvy.

Saif Ali Khan, the current heartthrob of Bollywood, says: “I am not

good at business or anything else in life. The only thing I know is

acting.” Fortunately for him, he seems set to become a rocker as well

but for others hope they are watching Khan carefully.

Actress Manorama, who was known for her comic

and negative roles, was bitter with Bollywood for shunning her in her

later years but would still say “god is great”, says director Deepa

Mehta.

Mehta was shocked when she got to know that Manorama had passed

away Feb 15.

“Is she really gone? I didn’t even know. Nobody told me,” Mehta told

IANS.

“Manorama was so well-spoken, erudite and very intelligent.

Sometimes she used to get bitter about how Bollywood shunned her in

her later years. But most of the time she’d say, ‘God is great. Deepa,

never forget that’,” she added.

The portly woman with exaggerated eyelashes and expressions was

popularly known for roles like the wicked aunt in “Seeta Aur Geeta”,

“Ek Phool Do Maali” and “Do Kaliyan”.

A casualty of Bollywood’s heartlessness towards those who are seen as

not useful to the entertainment business any more, Manorama’s last

celluloid work was for Mehta’s “Water”, in which she played the leery

and vulgar widow who heads a widows’ ashram.

“What an amazing woman! She was so thrilled when she was

recognised at the Kerala Film Festival in Thiruvananthapuram last year

for her contribution to Indian cinema,” Mehta said.

“She suffered a stroke about six months ago. My partner David

Hamilton had gone to see her. I spoke to her last about four months

ago. She was slurring a bit, but she said she felt much better. I took her

word for it. And now, this….”

Interestingly, Manorama was the first and final choice to play

Madhumati in Mehta’s “Water”.

“We aborted ‘Water’ in Varanasi. The entire cast changed. Only

Manorama survived from the original cast. Five years later, she was on

again… I’m so shocked… what a great trouper at that age! Such spirit.

She shot at 40 degrees temperature in Sri Lanka. No joke for a woman

her age,” said Mehta who had originally cast Shabana Azmi and

Nandita Das for the film.

However, she finally made it with Lisa Ray, Seema Biswas, John

Abraham and Sarala Kariyawasam.

Mehta said her daughter was very fond of the late actress.

“She was so lovely. My daughter Devyani really bonded well with her.

Devyani was totally fascinated by Manorama’s history, her half-Irish

parentage and her beginnings in Bollywood as Baby Iris, then being a

heroine in Lahore and then a vamp in Mumbai. It was fascinating!”

Mehta recalls a heart-warming incident with Manorama.

“After ‘Water’ got truncated in Varanasi, I had gone to Mumbai.

Manorama told me, ‘You’d be happy to know I’ve got money to buy

myself a second-hand Maruti car. And I’ve also got a driver. So rather

than run around in three-wheelers I want you to have my car and driver

whenever you’re in Mumbai.’ Can you believe this!

“During all this time no one in Mumbai has offered me a car and

driver. She loved the chance of working in ‘Water’. That got her

accolades. International audiences were shaken by her performance.

They felt she was very organic. Very real.”

Beginning as a child artiste in 1926, Manorama did nearly 150 films.

She had slowed down considerably and was very much out of the

groove, emerging once in a while as she did in Mahesh Bhatt’s

“Junoon” in 1992.

Bhatt told a poignant story of Manorama’s impoverished state. “When

Manorama was paid for her work, she sighed and said, ‘Today I’ll be

able to take a bath’.”

65.Now Shammi Kapoor’s son dons director’s mantle
Feb 15, 2008

Mumbai, (IANS) A scion of the illustrious RK banner has returned to

the roots. After 20 years of being a management honcho, Shammi

Kapoor’s son Mickey or Aditya Raj Kapoor is directing a Hindi film.

“I am casting for the movie right now. Actually, this is my fourth film.

I have made three English language movies and finally I am making a

Bollywood movie,” said Aditya, the 50-year-old son of the former

Bollywood superstar.

Mickey had opted out of movies after working as an assistant to Raj

Kapoor at the age of 19 because the competition from home was “too

much” and the burden of expectation was “too big”.

“There were several people in my family who were into films - Raj

Kapoor, my dad, Shashi Kapoor, Randhir Kapoor and Rishi Kapoor. I

did not want to be the sixth RK member on the screen,” he said.

Mickey also wanted to know “more about the world at large and about

business” and switched over to management. “But now, not too many

Kapoors are active. And besides, I’ve ventured into direction now,

rather than acting. Directing a movie is about creating opinions

through visuals and I am comfortable with it,” he said.

The first movie that Mickey directed was “Schamal”, followed by

“Sambar Salsa” and then “Don’t Stop Dreaming”, featuring Rishi

Kapoor and Suneil Shetty.

Times Music will release the music of “Don’t Stop Dreaming” shortly

in India. The music has been released in England.

Shammi Kapoor himself had directed two films, “Manoranjan” and

“Bundalbaaz”, two unsuccessful box office ventures, in the 1970s. “He

did it for a lark. He didn’t need to,” defends the doting son.

What took Mickey so long to find his Bollywood moorings? “I was

into management for 20 years. Before that, I worked as an assistant to

Raj Kapoor. At 19, I chose to pursue business rather than movies.

Three years ago, I decided it was enough and I took off my shirt and tie,

bought myself a good pair of jeans and decided to make films,” he

said.”Luckily, my family has been with me both the times - when I

chose to leave movies and now that I have returned,” the Kapoor scion

said.

Mickey aka Aditya says he wrote three scripts and all of them were

accepted.Ask him what kind of Hindi film he’ll make, and Mickey says:

“It’s not a big film. It’s an intimate character study. And by intimate I

don’t mean it will have sex in it. It’ll be an intense single-hero film.”

Mickey has also set up a television channel in Dubai. “That was my

turnaround. I’m really blessed to belong to one of the most illustrious

families and I want to make the most of it,” the Kapoor scion said.

Having Shammi Kapoor for a father has been a blessing for Mickey.

“It’s always up to the individual how he treats the lineage and the kind

of opportunities he gets. I’m in no hurry. I’ll spend the next five years

doing Hindi movies. Then I’ll make some more English movies,”

Mickey said.

Singer Jaspinder Narula, who is back after a

prolonged break from the playback scene, says her singing potential

and versatility have not been utilised well enough in Bollywood.

“My personal style of singing has never been used. I feel my voice is

suited best for romantic and softer songs. But I have never been given a

chance. Now I am looking forward to good work,” Jaspinder told

IANS on phone from Mumbai.

Currently a participant in NDTV Imagine’s new music show “Dhoom

Macha De”, Jaspinder feels that singers in the Indian music industry are

underestimated in terms of their versatility and calibre.

Jaspinder shot to fame in 1998 after a duet with Remo Fernandes in

the Kajol- Ajay Devgan starrer “Pyaar To Hona Hi Tha”. Since then,

she has been offered only folk or energetic and loud numbers in films.

She said: “I have worked with a number of music directors but

unfortunately I have always been offered to sing ‘dhoom dhadake’

(loud and peppy) numbers only. The directors should explore the full

potential of a singer.”

Among the present lot of music directors in India, Jaspinder loves the

music composed by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, Pritam and Vishal-Shekhar

and would like to work with them in the near future.

So is Shankar Mahadevan in her list of favourites because he is a judge

for “Dhoom Macha De”?

Jaspinder clarified that her association with Shankar went back to the

time when both of them were struggling to carve a niche as singers in

Bollywood.

“I don’t think he will be partial towards me,” she said.

Asked why she decided to participate in the TV show, Jaspinder said:

“‘Dhoom Macha De’ is a unique reality show. It was a chance for me to

share the stage with many of my contemporaries and basically it is a lot

of fun!”

Jaspinder, who was in Canada for the past few months, is also pursuing

a PhD on the influence of Urdu and Persian on Hindustani classical

music and will be receiving her degree soon.

She hopes to bring back the real aesthetics of Indian music, which she

says is getting lost due to the influence of Western music.

Bipasha Basu will be paired opposite Viveik Oberoi for the Hindi

remake of the Tamil super hit, Thoodil. It was recently reported that

many A-list heroines were not keen to act with Viveik and had been

excusing themselves out of his projects. When Bipasha agreed to do

the film opposite him, it came as a pleasant surprise to Viveik.

A source reveals, “Viveik and Bipasha have been finalised by K.S.

Adhiyaman who had earlier made Hum Tumhare Hain Sanam with

Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan and Madhuri Dixit in the lead.

Adhiyaman had also directed the original, Thoondil, which was shot

completely in London.

Another source continues, “It is said that heroines like Vidya Balan and

Priyanka Chopra refused to be paired along with him for Ram, Rahim

Aur Romeo and director Tushar Hiranandani’s film since they didn’t

want to get on the wrong side of Salman Khan. The Salman-Viveik

row is legendary. Since John Abraham is also in the bad books of

Salman after their fight during the Rockstars tour, Bipasha doesn’t care

what Salman thinks.”

Viveik’s next release is Mission Istanbul with newcomer Shweta

Bhardwaj opposite him.

U Me Aur Hum will be Kajol’s second film after marriage. The actress

excitedly talks about the film, her husband Ajay Devgan as the director

and her debut as a producer on the eve of the music launch of her film.

How did it feel being directed by Ajay Devgan?
It was an honour and I am proud of the fact that my husband directed

me as a heroine. He is one of the best directors I have ever worked with

and it’s going to stay with me for a very long time. He is a true director

to the core.

How many inputs did you give as a producer and a wife on the sets?

Were there any improvisations on the sets? Did you ever discuss the

film at home?
I don’t think I have made any special effort. Right from the story idea,

to the script and the through the entire shoot — all of us worked

together. The credit goes to the executive producer, the editors,

scriptwriters and everyone who worked hard to make it a good film.

We used to brainstorm, chat and develop new ideas. So it was a team

effort. As far as the improvisations were concerned, we had a bound

script and we shot as it was. We do discuss changes sometimes but

nowadays it has increased since we are in the post-production phase.

Ajay speaks about nothing but the film.

Now that you have become a producer any chances of taking up

direction? How strict was Ajay on the sets?
No, absolutely not. I am happy acting and I feel I can achieve a lot as an

actor. Ajay was like a principal of a school and I think if a principal is

not strict, the school can go haywire. Ajay in fact, did just that. He

made sure everyone on the sets knew who the captain of the ship was.

He has a different working pattern. Though he was the director of the

film, I was also the producer so he didn’t scold me. He was so clear

with his ideas that he never got a chance to reprimand me. Ajay is very

easy to understand. I think we would be very dumb not to understand

Ajay.

Was there any particular reason you chose Vishal Bharadwaj to sing

the title track of the film?
I think it is important to bring in new talent. We were also given a

break when we were newcomers. He is a great music director and has a

great voice and hence we asked him to sing the title track. It is my

favourite number in the film. The album has lovely numbers. There a

slow romantic number, a naughty number and a fast Punjabi track. So

it has a mix of everything.

Now that you are back what kind of roles are you looking forward to?

We have heard that you are doing Karan Johar’s My Name Is Khan?
I’ve tentatively said yes to Karan. I have not yet read the script. Nothing

has been finalised yet. As for my roles, it depends on the script. It has

to be a good script and a good director. I won’t say yes unless I see the

script.

Did your daughter come on the sets? Have you ever shown her your

earlier films?
Nyasa was with us on the cruise but not on the sets. She used to get

bored. Her school was also starting so I didn’t take her with us. When

she was around, I got tense about her food and sleep and couldn’t

concentrate on work. I tried showing her my films but when she sees

me crying, she starts crying too and asks us to change the channel. She

can’t bear to see tears in my eyes. Maybe I will show her my films

when she grows up and can understand better.

Why do you think married heroines are making a comeback into films?
It’s not a recent trend. Heroines from the days of Saira Banu have made

a comeback after marriage. But yes, the audience has changed, their

viewpoint has changed. Films on different subjects are being made and

I consider myself lucky to be in an age where I can do different kinds of

films. You don’t have to be a 16-year-old to do films anymore.

“Mast” boy Aftab Shivdasani, who has failed to

become a bankable star after many films, has turned producer - to

create opportunities for himself that won’t come otherwise.

“Yes, I’m turning producer this year. I’ve set up my company Rising

Son Entertainment. And the first film goes on the floors in June-July,”

the actor said.

“I’m turning a producer to create opportunities for myself, to do roles

and films that would otherwise not come to me. In fact, the director

has also been finalised. I can’t announce his name because he hasn’t

been signed as yet,” Aftab told IANS.

Interestingly, Aftab isn’t only producing the film, but also writing it.

“I discovered I had it in me to write a script when I waited on the sets

while shooting. Instead of wasting time, I started writing. And the

process resulted in a very interesting romantic story.”

Aftab was a well-known child artiste and featured in films like as “Mr

India”, “Chaalbaaz” and “Insaniyat”, till Ram Gopal Varma launched

him as a full-fledged hero in “Mast”.

After that, he was seen in several films like “Kasoor”, “Awara Paagal

Deewana”, “Pyaar Ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega” and “Masti”.

Aftab wants to cast a new girl opposite himself in his first production.

The hunt for a fresh face is currently on.

The actor admits that he leads a busy life. “But I can’t sleep around or

do drugs just to be written about. Yes, I do lead a colourful life. After

all, I’m just 29 and single. But what I do in my private moments is not

for public consumption.”

Aftab is just getting over his break-up with Yana Gupta.

“It was painful. Aren’t all break-ups difficult? But the wounds are

healing on both sides now. When we broke up, we both decided not to

speak about it in public. And we stuck to our guns.

“Even now there’s tremendous respect and friendship between us. It

isn’t fun beyond a point to be single. If I had my way, I’d have gotten

married at 23. But things haven’t worked out. Maybe I’ll get lucky in

love next time.”

In 2007, Aftab had maintained a low profile.

“I was shooting for two of my films - Ganesh Acharya’s ‘Money Hai To

Honey Hai’ and E. Niwas’ ‘De Taali’. I won’t categorise them as

comedies. They are romantic comedies in the way we have them in

Hollywood. Very frankly, I’ve had my fill of all-boys’ comedies. I’m

hungering for better acting opportunities. By producing my own films,

I hope to renew my energies as an actor.”

The “unforgettable” Bachchan concert tour featuring

Amitabh Bachchan, Abhishek, Aishwarya and with Jaya probably being

coaxed for a friendly appearance, will begin this July.

Speaking about her first family tour, Aishwarya told IANS: “Yes, it’s

on in July and August. It’s wonderful to be on stage with Abhishek and

Pa (the Big B). I remember how wonderful it was when we did ‘Kajra

re’ at the IIFA (International Indian Film Academy) awards two years

ago,” she said.

“That one act featuring the three of us was a rock concert by itself. It

was fantastic! Now going on stage as Amitji’s daughter-in-law and

Abhishek’s wife would make it doubly fantastic.”

The announcement puts an end to speculation regarding the financial

and creative feasibility of this celebration of family bonhomie.

Hrithik Roshan and Akshay Kumar were supposed to join the

Bachchans on the tour. They opted out citing lack of time. Now the

final list of actors joining the Bachchans includes Bipasha Basu, Lara

Dutta and Riteish Deshmukh.

Though Jaya isn’t much of a dancer, the Bachchan clan loves to groove

together.

“You know, we really do have a good time on stage. I’ve watched pa’s

earlier concerts, and I’ve seen how he rivets the audience. Even now

when he chooses to go on stage once in a while, he truly has a blast.

Abhishek has a party on stage. All three of us love live concerts,”

Aishwarya said.

“And we genuinely love music and dance. That’s one thing we have in

common. So we’re going to have a grand party on stage. And I hope the

audience enjoys it as well.”

And would “Kajra re” still be a part of the Aishwarya’s stage

repertoire?

“Is it possible for the three of us to go on stage and not do that song?

Sharing screen and stage space with my husband and father-in-law has

always been very special. It just can’t get any more special than this for

me,” she said.

“It doesn’t matter how many shows we do. Just the three of us

interacting with a live audience is a very special occasion. We’ll be up

there for the audience, and the audience hopefully will be cheering us,”

Aishwarya said.

Saif Ali Khan says although he would love to team

up with girlfriend Kareena Kapoor in all his productions, he has made

it clear that he has not been instrumental in getting her a role in his

untitled venture.

“It’s entirely between Kareena and my business partner Dinesh Vijen.

There was a verbal commitment between them for a couple of projects.

Kareena and I don’t discuss business,” said Saif, who will be seen in

Abbas-Mustan’s ready-to-release action thriller “Race”.

“It is entirely the directors’ prerogative and we sign up the stars they

want,” Saif told IANS.

“Yes, I’d want Kareena and I to be in all our productions. But I’m not

going to thrust our pair down producers’ throats. Of course, I’d like

Kareena to be in every film I make. But my directors may have other

plans,” he added.

After J.P. Dutta’s “LOC”, the two will be seen together in Yash Raj

Films’ “Tashan”.

Saif has admitted his relationship with Kareena, who broke up with

longstanding boyfriend Shahid Kapur. Saif also got ‘Kareena’ tattooed

on his arm. Sadly, the famous arm has been injured. His hand was

bandaged when he performed with a rock band in Bangalore and

Mumbai last month.

“Yeah, I injured my right hand while shooting in Greece. I put a glass

down too hard after a drink. And it broke in my hand. It’s no big deal.

The only thing is that I can’t shake hands. Fortunately, it didn’t affect

my guitar-playing,” said the actor whose “Ta Ra Rum Pum” and

“Eklavya - The Royal Guard” bombed last year.

Saif says those who constantly ask him about the ‘Kareena’ tattoo

annoy him.

“On the other hand, you can’t really blame them, I suppose it’s a big

deal. So people will talk about it for sometime and then stop talking

after a while. You got to remove yourself from the place of discomfort

and look at it more dispassionately.”

He was aware that the media would focus on the tattoo rather than his

music when he performed at the concerts. “Fortunately, the audience

appreciated the music. Look, the limelight is a moving spotlight. Once

in a while, you are caught in it.”

Couldn’t he get the tattoo done in a less visible place? After all, it’s all

about Saif and his love. “No. It’s between me and my arm,” he shot

back.

After the successful rock concerts, would Saif like to cut an album?

“No, can’t sing beyond the lower notes. I was in Alibaug to finish the

last schedule of Kunal Kohli’s untitled film Jan 28 to Feb 3. We’re

done with this film.”

Thespian Dilip Kumar’s ill health has delayed the

government’s plans to honour him, singing legend Lata Mangeshkar,

Bengali director Tapan Sinha and south Indian actress B. Saroja Devi.

“Dilip Kumar is not keeping well, so he is not able to come to Delhi.

We will have the ceremony whenever he is fit enough to travel,” said

Neelam Kapur, additional director general of the Directorate of Film

Festivals.

The information and broadcasting ministry has chosen the four artists

for lifetime achievement awards for their contribution to Indian

cinema.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Priyaranjan Dasmunsi had

announced the honours at the opening ceremony of the 38th

International Film Festival Of India (IFFI). He said the ministry had

decided to honour film artists and technicians for their contribution to

the industry in view of the 60th anniversary of India’s independence.

Referring to the National Awards, Kapur said: “After a week or so we

will start calling the entries for the 2006 films. And then the

announcement will be made after two or three months.”

Hollywood media giant Walt Disney Company is

poised to invest Rs.13.14 billion ($330.4 million) in two UTV group

firms.

An agreement has recently been reached between the two groups under

which Disney, through its subsidiary The Walt Disney Company

(Southeast-Asia) Pvt Ltd will invest Rs.13.14 billion in UTV Software

Communications Ltd (USCL) and UTV Global Broadcasting Ltd

(UGBL).

UGBL is the parent company for its two wholly owned subsidiaries,

Genx Entertainment Ltd and UTV Entertainment Television Ltd. Genx

has already launched successfully two youth entertainment channels

through the Bindass brand while the latter just launched The World

Movies channel and is about to start UTV Hindi Movies channel.

Roma Patel, chief financial officer of UTV Group, told IANS Monday

that the transaction would be done through a preferential allotment to

Disney in keeping with the requirements of the Indian markets

regulator, Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).

The company would also keep its shareholders informed by a public

announcement. The deal and the open offer of Rs.1.19 billion is

subject to regulatory and shareholder approvals.

The agreement, once sealed, will help Disney increase its stake in UTV

from 13.7 percent to 32.1 percent.

Disney will invest about Rs.8.05 billion in USCL. The company has

also acquired 15 percent stake in UGBL, worth Rs.1.19 billion.

Besides, the Hollywood major has also promised UTV with Rs.3.90

billion in the form of warrants (bonds).

As part of the transaction, the number of UTV shares to be issued to

Disney is 9,352,500 at Rs.869.70 per share.

Ronnie Screwvala, as founder-promoter of UTV, will consolidate the

promoter’s stake in the company with 4,532,000 shares.

As for UGBL, UTV will control 75 percent stake in the company

investing Rs.2.4 billion and give away only 15 percent to Disney

against its investment of Rs.1.19 billion. The Ronnie Screwvala

Promoter Group will hold the remaining 10 percent.

Screwvala said that Disney’s investments and the money coming in

after divesting a part of its stake would be utilised in movie and

animation projects. “In about a month’s time, we will finalise the plans

we have already drawn up,” he told IANS.

Screwvala discounted fears that dilution of the stake would endanger

his hold on the company. He was confident that Disney’s international

fame for its animation movies would be helpful for the animation

projects of UTV.

After proving his mettle in “Sunday”, Arshad Warsi is

playing an incorrigible gambler in director Leena Yadav’s “Teen Patti”.

And it’s all because of the Big B, Amitabh Bachchan.

“I’m doing a film with him (Amitabh) called ‘Teen Patti’. It is my

career’s first movie with a female director, Leena Yadav. There I learnt

to play cards because I play a gambler. But it was neither a female

director nor the cards that lured me to ‘Teen Patti’, though I love the

idea of working with Leena. She is so talented and so sure of herself,”

Arshad told IANS.

So what lured Arshad to “Teen Patti”?

“The main reason why I grabbed ‘Teen Patti’ is Mr. Bachchan. I wanted

to work with him. Believe it or not, the only film I’ve done so far with

him is the unreleased ‘Zamaanat’, which was the second film I signed in

my career. Since then, Mr. Bachchan has evolved so much. Man, what a

rock star! To share screen space with him would be the challenge I

would welcome at this point in my career.”

And that challenge is round the corner and also the daunting task of

working with a female director.

Chuckles Arshad: “Forget working with a female director, I hardly get

to do movies with women. I think the first fully romantic film that I’ll

do is a remake of ‘Brokeback Mountain’. At least, I’m not being taken

for granted any more. Producers now listen to me. I’m dying to direct a

film.”

Juhi Chawla will be seen in a Rakesh Roshan film

again, “Krazzy 4″, which is scheduled for release April 14.

Her earlier venture with Roshan was in his ill-fated “Karobaar” in

2000, in which she played Rishi Kapoor’s wife who’s tempted to spend

a night with tycoon Anil Kapoor. The remake of the Robert

Redford-Demi Moore film “An Indecent Proposal” was a fiasco.

“That’s because the film got delayed. By the time ‘Karobaar’ was

released, the story was stale. Anyway, Juhi is working with us again,”

Rakesh Roshan told IANS.

In “Krazzy 4″, the actress plays a psychiatrist. The film is being directed

by Raja Sen.

“Juhi plays a very important role of a psychiatrist. We needed someone

mature. While all the guys - Arshad Warsi, Rajpal Yadav, Irrfan Khan

and Suresh Menon - are funny, Juhi is very serious,” said Rakesh

Roshan.

This is Juhi’s second role as a shrink in a comedy. She was given the

thankless task of curing Govinda’s mind in David Dhawan’s “Deewana

Mastana”.

Not too many of our leading ladies get to play psychiatrists. Lately,

starlet Pinky Harwani starred as a shrink whom the troubled Sammir

Dattani was seeing in Vikram Bhatt’s “Life Mein Kabhi Kabhie”.

Guess who is playing the mastermind of the terror

bombings that rocked Mumbai’s suburban trains on July 11, 2006, in

director Neeraj Pandey’s take on the incident? The hugely talented

Naseeruddin Shah.

Pandey, a newcomer to the industry, has almost completed his film

titled “Wednesday”.

The movie features Anupam Kher as a policeman investigating the

bombings.

The makers of “Wednesday” plan to release the movie on Independence

Day, Aug 15.

For Naseeruddin, the character is a challenge. It is not something he

has done before. “I took on this role because I’ve never played anything

like this before,” says Naseer, who will soon fly to London to shoot for

Jagmohan Mundhra’s “Shoot On Sight”.

In “Shoot On Sight”, Naseeruddin plays a Muslim policeman, whose

30 years of loyal service to the British police force is questioned after

the July 7, 2005, suicide bombings in London’s underground railway.

The two back-to-back reality movies give the actor a chance to explore

terrorism from both ends. And it also proves the industry’s growing

interest in exploring the anatomy of global terror.

Earlier, Anurag Kashyap set his movie “Black Friday” on the 1992

Mumbai serial blasts.